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First Rate Debussy

Hugh Oliver | Provo, UT | 08/02/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Walter Gieseking's Debussy was ideal and Kyoko Tabe is a marvelous pianist in the Gieseking tradition. Her Debussy, like the late master's, is imaginative, evocative, shimmering, sometimes mysterious, sometimes filled with delight. She is more than able to meet technical challenges and get inside the music. I suppose the question could come up--why not just stick with Gieseking himself, to which my response would be that I am always interested in hearing what other pianists have to say. Being under a great influence such as that of Gieseking is as it should be. Tabe is certainly a worthwhile and individual enough voice in her own right. Plus, even modern technology cannot do that much for the limitations of 1940's and early 1950's recorded sound. Chandos has given Tabe wonderful sound.



Actually, I am not sure that Gieseking's influence on Debussy pianism is really so widespread anymore. I've heard more than one performance of L'isle Joyeuse that made it sound like a straightforward showpiece--all display and no sense of exoticism or mystery. I also recently heard Thibaudet on the radio playing Gardens in the Rain and he made it sound like Liszt. I think Liszt is great and some of his music even looks ahead to impressionism, but still, Debussy should not sound like Liszt, even in music that calls for as much technical prowess as L'isle and Gardens. Coming back to Kyoko Tabe--I'm delighted to report that she gets it. She feels this music and her playing has a wonderful touch. This is how Debussy should be played and I highly recommend this CD.

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